Bright Ideas # 40 – Dare to be Different
 

 
This week, I want to ask you a very important question. It may be easy for you to answer, or it may be harder than you think. But having the right answer is critical to the success of your business.

Not that you can’t have a successful business if you don’t know the answer. It’s just that you can have a much more successful one if you do.

Because if potential customers know the answer and remember it—and it makes a difference to them—then they will buy from you every time.

Ready to find out what the heck I’m talking about?

Alrighty then, here goes. The question of the day is…

“Why should I buy from you instead of one of your competitors?”

Or…

“What is it that makes your products, services or business different from
everyone else’s?”

In marketing, the answer to this question is called your Unique Selling Proposition or USP. And it’s what makes you stand out from the crowd.

The best part is…chances are your USP already exists. It’s sitting right under your nose smirking at you.

Because you are a unique individual. So unless you run a franchise, you probably already do some things differently than everyone else.

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Finding your hidden USP
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Here’s an example of a USP that was just waiting to be discovered…

One of my clients is a local design/build remodeling firm. They desperately needed to come up with a good USP, because every decent remodeling firm builds nice remodels to code. And many have experienced designers on staff.

Luckily, as I talked to them and learned about their business, I quickly saw their USP.

They have an amazing system for making the remodeling process smooth and easy. From assigning one contact person to oversee your job, to weekly progress meetings and even professional housecleaning at the end, they go above and beyond to make the experience pleasurable.

Now, I could have just said they have great customer service. But this is a really general statement with no clear benefit. And these days it’s so overused it’s lost any power or meaning (avoid it like the plague!!).

So I created a new tagline, “Building piece of mind in every project”. And slogans like “An exceptional experience—from start to finish.”

Because when I researched the competition, almost everyone talked about their experience/years in business. Or the fact that they did design/build. Or quality construction.

But no one talked about the process or customer experience.

Yet we all know people are always worried their project will take too long, cost too much, disrupt their lives, or not get done at all. So what they really need is a contractor they can trust to get the job done right the first time—so they don’t have to worry.

And that’s exactly what this USP speaks to. Best of all, my client was already doing it…they just weren’t talking about it.

Don’t think you already have a hidden USP? No worries!

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You can always invent a USP
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Just look at Dominos Pizza...

When they first came on the scene, they offered an undeniably strong USP: pizza in 30 minutes or less—or it’s free! Back then, pizza delivery regularly took an hour or more. So who wouldn’t want their pie in 30 minutes or less?

Founder Tom Monaghan had found a way to make something ordinary—pizza delivery—extraordinarily different. And he found a way to do it that provided obvious value to the customer.

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Discover what makes you different by asking yourself these questions:
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1) “In what unique way do my clients/customers benefit by doing business with me instead of my competition?’

2) What results do my clients get that are different from what they get with my competitors?

Once you’ve done that, then it’s time to make sure you can lay claim to that turf. How? By researching the competition.

Find out:
1) Does anyone do what you do?

2) If so, do they talk about it in their marketing materials?

If they have a USP you want, but they aren’t promoting it, then go ahead and claim first rights. But if they are advertising it already, you need to find something else. Otherwise you’re not doing anything different.

Once you’ve got your USP, don’t bury it in your brochure or the About page of your Website.

Make it the core theme behind every piece of marketing or advertising you create. Put it on home page. State it in your tagline. Talk about it in your “elevator speech”. Shout it from the rooftops.

Soon, it’s what you will be known for. And people will come from miles around to experience the unique benefits that only doing business with you can offer.

©2002-2006 Success Stream. All Rights Reserved. www.success-stream.com

Do you have a marketing, advertising or writing question you’d like to have answered? Email me and you might see the answer in a future edition of Bright Ideas.
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